Arcturus Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ARCT) Shares Up 13.3% - Here's Why

Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:ARCT - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 13.3% on Friday . The company traded as high as $20.92 and last traded at $20.22. Approximately 186,092 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average daily volume of 467,727 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.85.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ARCT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Arcturus Therapeutics to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $63.00 price target on shares of Arcturus Therapeutics in a report on Friday, November 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Arcturus Therapeutics in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Leerink Partners initiated coverage on shares of Arcturus Therapeutics in a report on Monday, August 12th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Arcturus Therapeutics has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $71.40.

Arcturus Therapeutics Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $517.09 million, a PE ratio of -8.60 and a beta of 2.62. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $19.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.82.

Arcturus Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ARCT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.70) by $0.44. The business had revenue of $41.67 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.16 million. Arcturus Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 36.39% and a negative return on equity of 22.39%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.61) earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. will post -2.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Pad Chivukula sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.76, for a total transaction of $249,120.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 435,334 shares in the company, valued at $9,037,533.84. This represents a 2.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 15.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arcturus Therapeutics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Arcturus Therapeutics in the third quarter worth approximately $42,000. Quest Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Arcturus Therapeutics by 3,283.5% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 3,688 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 3,579 shares during the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Arcturus Therapeutics by 64.4% in the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,201 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $121,000 after purchasing an additional 2,038 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Arcturus Therapeutics in the second quarter worth approximately $142,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Arcturus Therapeutics in the second quarter worth approximately $188,000. 94.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Arcturus Therapeutics Company Profile

Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc, a late-stage clinical messenger RNA medicines and vaccine company, focuses on the development of infectious disease vaccines and other products within liver and respiratory rare diseases. Its technology platforms include LUNAR lipid-mediated delivery and STARR mRNA.